The present invention relates to the medical diagnostic and surgical arts. It finds particular application in conjunction with neurosurgery and will be described with particular reference thereto. However, it is to be appreciated that the invention will also find application in conjunction with various medical procedures, including neurobiopsy, CT-table needle body biopsy, breast biopsy, endoscopic procedures, orthopedic surgery, and the like.
Three-dimensional diagnostic images of the brain, spinal cord, and other body portions are produced by diagnostic imaging equipment such as CT scanners, magnetic resonance imagers, and the like. These imaging modalities often provide structural detail with a resolution of a millimeter or better.
Image guided surgery systems have been developed to utilize this data to assist the surgeon in presurgical planning and in accurately locating a region of interest within the body of a patient. In the operating theater, these systems are used to display position and orientation of a surgical tool in its correct location with respect to the images of the patient. One example of an image guided surgery system is U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,990, Stereotaxy Wand and Tool Guide, to Kalfas et al. issued May 21, 1996, incorporated by reference herein.
Three and sometimes four views of image data are displayed on a monitor visible to the surgeon. These views typically include axial, sagittal, and coronal views of the patient. A fourth oblique view is sometimes displayed, presenting image data in a plane orthogonal to the tip of the probe. The location of the tip of the tool and the tool's trajectory, together with the desired location and trajectory, are displayed on one or more of these images. The algebraic distance between the tip of the tool and a desired position may also be displayed numerically on the monitor. The distance may also be calculated along an axis orthogonal or parallel to the plane of one or more of the views.
Although image guided surgery systems are more accurate and provide the surgeon with more information compared to previous techniques, it is sometimes difficult to visualize, with reference to image data displayed on the monitor, the manipulation required to place the surgical tool in the desired position and orientation. As will be appreciated, the surgeon is required to visualize the position of the tool with respect to the image data and then relate that information to a required motion of the tool in relation to the patient. This task is complicated by the three dimensional nature of the required manipulation, the two dimensional nature of the images, and the often disparate positions of the monitor and the patient.
Current systems also require that the surgeon view the monitor to determine the position of the tool. The surgeon is thus forced to divert his or her attention from the tool and the patient, thereby complicating the positioning process. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide the surgeon with a readily understandable indication of the proper tool position and orientation without requiring the surgeon to divert his or her attention to a remote monitor or display.
The present invention provides a new and improved method and apparatus which addresses the above-referenced matters, and others.